Set against the gorgeous backdrop of Rome, Tom Rachman’s wry, vibrant debut follows the topsy-turvy private lives of the reporters, editors, and executives of an international English language newspaper as they struggle to keep it—and themselves—afloat.

Fifty years and many changes have ensued since the paper was founded by an enigmatic millionaire, and now, amid the stained carpeting and dingy office furniture, the staff’s personal dramas seem far more important than the daily headlines. Kathleen, the imperious editor in chief, is smarting from a betrayal in her open marriage; Arthur, the lazy obituary writer, is transformed by a personal tragedy; Abby, the embattled financial officer, discovers that her job cuts and her love life are intertwined in a most unexpected way. Out in the field, a veteran Paris freelancer goes to desperate lengths for his next byline, while the new Cairo stringer is mercilessly manipulated by an outrageous war correspondent with an outsize ego. And in the shadows is the isolated young publisher who pays more attention to his prized basset hound, Schopenhauer, than to the fate of his family’s quirky newspaper.

As the era of print news gives way to the Internet age and this imperfect crew stumbles toward an uncertain future, the paper’s rich history is revealed, including the surprising truth about its founder’s intentions.

Spirited, moving, and highly original, The Imperfectionists will establish Tom Rachman as one of our most perceptive, assured literary talents.

New York Times Book Reviewer said “This first novel by Tom Rachman, a London-born journalist who has lived and worked all over the world, is so good I had to read it twice simply to figure out how he pulled it off.”

It’s interesting because there are dozens of glowing reviews from newspaper book reviewers but the goodreads reviews are much less glowing and I wonder if one reviewer didn’t hit on it perfectly. ” it was not very enjoyable reading, unless perhaps one works for a newspaper and enjoys the personalities in that trade.”

Meeting Jett was like a drug. Dangerous. Addictive. And better forbidden. In his game, there’s a high price to be paid. But how much is too much?

Brooke Stewart, a realtor in New York, was never in love until she met the green eyed, sexy as sin, six foot two sex god, Jett. The man to whom she surrendered. The man who hurt her once only to conquer her heart again.

Sexy, handsome, and arrogant Jett Mayfield knows he has found his match. Brooke is like no other woman he’s ever met and he has every intention of keeping her in his bed.

Their future seems full of promise…until the past is catching up with them and dark secrets threaten to destroy their lives. Soon they realize that to love means to lose, and some choices are harder than others.

When everything comes crashing down, can mistakes be amended…or will he lose her forever?

A woman who surrendered to love.
A man who would do anything to protect her.
Two lives that are about to be tested…and the last secrets laid bare.

Three self published books by J.C. Reed are on sale for .99 each. “Treasure Your Love”, “Conquer Your Love”, and “Surrender Your Love”. I bought Surrender a while back and didn’t finish it. I don’t know if I actually started and stopped but I know I looked at in my Kindle App at one time.

Lady Sophia has long been estranged from her husband, Vane Barwick, the Duke of Claxton, whose rumored list of amorous conquests includes almost every beautiful woman of the ton. Yet a shocking encounter with him in a crowded ballroom-and a single touch-are all it takes to reawaken her furious passion for him. But how can she trust the man who crushed her dreams and took away the one thing she wanted most?

A Love Beyond Reason

Claxton has never forgiven himself for the youthful mistake that ruined his marriage to Sophia. Now, after nearly a year abroad, the reformed rogue vows to win back the only woman he’s ever truly loved. He’ll do whatever it takes to prove he can be the honorable husband she deserves-and the passionate lover she desires. As the snowdrifts deepen outside their ancestral home, can they rekindle the flame that burned so bright and find a new path to forever?

(95,000 words)

This was given a starred review by PW. It’s a marriage in trouble book and I’m intrigued. Bought! “Dalton’s Regency debut resonates with genuine feeling. Sophia and Vane Barwick, the Duke and Duchess of Claxton, were happy newlyweds, in love and expecting a baby. Not even two years later, they’re estranged, with Vane on a diplomatic assignment in Vienna and Sophia in London dealing with gossip and spiteful innuendo about Vane’s licentious past.”

Lily Dalton is a penname for a well known author right? Or am I mixing people up?

Caren Gray manages Louisiana’s stately Belle Vie, an antebellum plantation-turned-tourist attraction where the past and the present coexist uneasily. Outside the gates, an ambitious corporation snaps up sugarcane fields from struggling families, replacing local employees with illegal laborers. Tensions mount when a female migrant worker is found in a shallow grave on the edge of the plantation property, her throat cut clean through.

As the sheriff’s department zeroes in on a suspect, Caren suspects the police are chasing the wrong leads. Putting herself at risk, she unearths startling secrets about the long-ago disappearance of a former slave that has unsettling ties to the current murder—secrets that a desperate killer will stop at nothing to keep buried.

Taut, hauntingly resonant, and beautifully written, The Cutting Season is a thoughtful meditation on how America reckons its past with its future.

I thought the little badge noting it was a “Dennis Lehane Book” was interesting. This was his first selection for his imprint at Harper Collins.

From Library Journal: “VERDICT Locke’s second novel (after 2009’s Black Water Rising) is a layered, nuanced mystery with a social conscience. Weaving legal, social, historical, and economic elements into the story of a changing family, it’s a good choice for readers who enjoy multifaceted mysteries with a strong female protagonist and that blur genre distinctions”

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Jane Litte is the founder of Dear Author, a lawyer, and a lover of pencil skirts. She spends her downtime reading romances and writing about them. Her TBR pile is much larger than the one shown in the picture and not as pretty.
You can reach Jane by email at jane @ dearauthor dot com

Never Desire a Duke seems to be a polarizing book. I tried a sample from it and like @Willaful I was unimpressed. The voice just wasn’t my cuppa. Jennie finished it though and gave it a C in her review. However the book is now a RITA finalist.

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